Starhawk influences include Plants vs Zombies, PixelJunk Monsters

Starhawk draws inspiration from games like Battle Zone, Plants vs Zombies and PixelJunk Monsters, according to Lightbox Interactive.

"I remember the day I was flying back from LA and playing Plants vs. Zombies on my iPad," CEO Dylan Jobe told Ripten.

" ... It was the simple yet fun aesthetics of collecting and spending sun which got us thinking about our very simple economy - killing to build and building to kill.

"The idea that shooting buildings, enemies, and vehicles would yield the currency for our Build&Battle system and how it had to be gratifying to 'get paid.'"

"... To an even larger degree, PixelJunk Monsters really inspired us for how way we handle our Build & Battle currency."

Less surprising is Lightbox's affection for Battlezone, a unique 1998 strategy title played in first-person perspective.

"BattleZone has always had a special place in my heart. [BattleZone] was the reason why I bought a 3DFX card way back in the day," Jobe said.

"BattleZone has come up several times in our discussions and debates about Starhawk and the comparisons and influences are pretty obvious."

The PlayStation 3-exclusive Starhawk, a spiritual successor to Warhawk with a full single-player campaign and RTS elements, is due sometime in 2012.